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Norma Rae

Play trailer Poster for Norma Rae PG Released Mar 2, 1979 1h 53m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
91% Tomatometer 32 Reviews 79% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
Like a lot of her family before her, Norma Rae (Sally Field) works at the local textile mill, where the pay is hardly commensurate with the long hours and lousy working conditions. But after hearing a rousing speech by labor activist Reuben (Ron Leibman), Norma is inspired to rally her fellow workers behind the cause of unionism. Her decision rankles her family, especially her fiancé, Sonny (Beau Bridges), and provokes no shortage of contempt from her employers.
Norma Rae

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Critics Consensus

Spearheaded by a galvanizing Sally Field, Norma Rae is a heartening and politically powerful drama about an ordinary woman taking an extraordinary stand.

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Critics Reviews

View All (32) Critics Reviews
Jay Scott Globe and Mail A bona-fide folk heroine. Aug 11, 2022 Full Review Gary Arnold Washington Post As a rule, the filmmakers manufacture fake climaxes every 10 or 15 minutes, poop out and lapse into forgetfulness, just as if they were structuring the material for television. Mar 4, 2019 Full Review Judith Martin Washington Post It's a dear and corny story, played with lovable grubbiness by Sally Field and Ron Leibman, but it's not about what you think. Feb 6, 2018 Full Review David Nusair Reel Film Reviews ...a deliberately-paced drama that grows more and more compelling as it unfolds... Rated: 3.5/4 Apr 27, 2023 Full Review Jas Keimig The Stranger (Seattle, WA) I can't get over how loud Norma Rae is...but that loudness is the point, as it underscores the working conditions of the overworked and underpaid laborers in the film. Jan 31, 2022 Full Review Michael Ventura L.A. Weekly Best of all is Sally Field -- this may be her finest performance, the most exuberant and the most intelligent. She'll get an Academy nomination next year if there's any justice. Hyperbole aside: this is simply a good film. Nov 5, 2021 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (219) audience reviews
Gertrude F The defining strength of this film is the fantastic performances by the entire cast but most notably Sally Field who completely transformed into Norma and delivered a intensely impactful performance. Rob Liebman was also perfectly cast. I could feel that the focus of the director was the story, a story that's just brilliantly built and executed. The ending was also amazing, cleverly using the song "it goes like it goes" from the beginning once again. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 05/03/24 Full Review Tam R Really enjoyed this film. First time seeing it. Was brought to my attention from Julia Louis-Dreyfus' podcast- Wiser Than Me- when she spoke with Sally Field. Inspiring story. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 04/16/24 Full Review Alec B Field and Leibman are very good here but the movie spends too much time on soap opera-esque character dynamics. If there were more scenes like the iconic one of Field holding up the "union" sign or the workers recounting their difficulties then this might have been a more effective drama. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/05/24 Full Review Audience Member Good story based on a real person (who wished to maintain her privacy) . Somewhat corny, but a solid story and a good reminder of how hard and dangerous the work to unionize was, even as recently as the 1970s. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/21/24 Full Review casnien v Norma, a married woman working in a factory, is displeased with the unhealthy working conditions. She decides to combine other workers with Reuben, a union organizer. Will she succeed in her motives? Norma Rae is the type of movie, that is really driven by performances and if they are not great, the movie doesn't land. Luckily we have a movie with one of the best best actress winners of all time, Sally field. As someone who is a big fan of Sally Field, I have never seen either one of her best actress winning performances and I can now fully agree with everyone, that this is one of the best of all time and one that will stand the test of time for sure. Outside Sally Field her powerhouse performance, we absolutely can't forget Beau Bridges his performance and I am surprised to see, that he wasn't in the awards conversation that year as well, because he gives a very moving and powerful supporting performance and has one incredible scene. The movie has some solid camerawork, but outside of that, you don't really have to watch this movie for the technical side of things, it mostly place out in a couple of locations, which is of course not a bad thing. Yeah the movie might be a bit predictable, however that ending still got to me. Solid story, with some of the best performances I have ever seen! Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/09/23 Full Review teresa j It is such a great underdog/women's rights movie. It deserves to be seen. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Norma Rae

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Movie Info

Synopsis Like a lot of her family before her, Norma Rae (Sally Field) works at the local textile mill, where the pay is hardly commensurate with the long hours and lousy working conditions. But after hearing a rousing speech by labor activist Reuben (Ron Leibman), Norma is inspired to rally her fellow workers behind the cause of unionism. Her decision rankles her family, especially her fiancé, Sonny (Beau Bridges), and provokes no shortage of contempt from her employers.
Director
Martin Ritt
Producer
Tamara Asseyev, Alexandra Rose
Screenwriter
Irving Ravetch, Harriet Frank Jr.
Production Co
Twentieth Century Fox
Rating
PG
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Mar 2, 1979, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Jul 1, 2020
Runtime
1h 53m